Tuesday, July 23, 2013

Tutorial Tuesday: Antiqued Crackle Ornaments

In case you need a little help getting into the holiday spirit in July, here's a tutorial for for quick and easy "instant heirloom" holiday ornaments that you can help your children make, or whip up yourself!

Antique Crackle Paper Ornaments

You'll need:

your favorite Dover holiday clip art

cardstock

craft glue

gold cording for the hanger

needle and thread or sewing machine

stuffing (batting, paper scraps, etc)

paint brush

crackle medium

water-based wood stain

Instructions:

1. Print your clip art onto plain white cardstock and cut out, leaving enough of a border around the image to allow space for stitching. For the ornament backing you may either print out the reverse of the image you have chosen, use plain white cardstock…or your imagination! Leather scraps or any stiff fabric can also be used.

2. Stitching around the image, sew the front and backing together, leaving a small gap at the top so you can add the hanger and stuff the ornament.

3. Poke a small amount of stuffing through the opening at the top of your ornament- just enough to puff out your ornament slightly…not so much it will burst!

4. Stitch the ornament closed, sewing in a small loop of gold cording for the hanger.

5. Coat both the front and back of your ornament with craft glue and allow to dry completely. Next, lightly brush on crackle medium and allow to dry. Then paint your ornament with a light-colored water-based wood stain. As the stain dries you'll notice the crackling effect happening!

Notes: You can make this project even more kid friendly by using a tiny hole punch to create guide holes that embroidery thread can be stitched through. You can also experiment with creating an antiqued look by dipping the cardstock in tea before sewing it together. While this project is suitable for the whole family to pitch in, the wood stain should only be handled by adults and older kids.